SIR Keir Starmer faces the wrath of pensioners after saying pensioners will be “better off” – despite axing winter fuel payments.
The Prime Minister is set for a backlash over the claims after controversially cutting their allowance worth up to £300 for some OAPs.
Sir Keir Starmer announced earlier this year that the Winter Fuel Payment for millions of pensioners would be cut[/caption]
Ministers have been under huge pressure on the issue since the end of July when they announced the benefit would be means-tested.
The PM said: “I’m very concerned to make sure pensioners are better off and that’s why we’re stabilising the economy.
“What that does is allow us to keep the triple lock.
“By keeping the triple lock that means the pension will go up by £400 this year.
“That’s in addition to the money that it went up this year which was £900 by the state pension.
“That’s the position on pensions but I am very concerned to make sure they’re both protected and better off under a Labour government.”
Rachel Reeves took the decision after she claimed she had a £22 billion financial black hole left by the Tories.
But the Chancellor has been warned that she will save less than expected after a surge in people claiming pension credit which allows them to still claim the benefit.
Around ten million people will be deprived of the winter fuel cash which was originally thought to save the Treasury £1.4 billion.
Around 750,000 people are set to miss out on the cash as they’re not expected to claim the benefit they are entitled to.
There has been a major outcry ever since the decision was made with some OAPs saying they will have to decide between “eating and heating” this winter.
It comes after Martin Lewis issued a passionate plea to Rachel Reeves to change winter fuel payment rules ahead of the Budget next week.
The consumer expert appeared as a guest on the The Rest is Money podcast this week and revealed what he thinks the government needs to do in the statement on Wednesday.
Martin revealed that he has had two meetings with Chancellor Rachel Reeves since Labour came into power.
His main concern is the changes to the winter fuel payment rules which were announced in the summer.
In July the Government announced the payment would become means-tested meaning only those on certain benefits are eligible.
This includes those on income support, tax credits, Universal Credit, and largely Pension Credit.
This means that around 10 million pensioners will no longer get the cash, which can be worth up to £300.
‘PENSION CREDIT’
Martin said he believes the Chancellor is “listening” to his thoughts.
He said: “I wrote an open letter to the Chancellor that mirrors my thoughts – the difficult bit is I can’t tell you what she’s saying back to me although she is listening.
“Clearly on winter fuel payment, I think they need to do some adaption and we need to see some mitigation coming into the Budget.
“For me, I have no problem getting rid of the universality of the winter fuel payment – millionaires don’t need it.”
Outling the issues he has with the move, he said firstly that the level of means-testing at an income of £11,400 a year is too low – and that it should be higher than that, closer to the “early £20,000s”.
The second point, and what he says is probably the more “urgent and difficult one”, is that he thinks the method of means testing is wrong.
Martin explained: “Because pension credit – something I’ve been trying to shout about for the last decade – is a benefit that we currently think around 800,000 of the poorest in society do not claim.
“They are entrenched into not claiming often due to mental capacity or dementia type issues or the 240-page form.
“So we are to use a critically underclaimed benefit to be the means-test – is something I have a real problem with.”
He added that he has spoken with the government both “publicly and privately” on this and that even if it managed to cut the number to 700,000, that’s still hundreds of thousands of people who are the most vulnerable earning under £11,400 who will lose winter fuel payment.
What is the Winter Fuel Payment?
Consumer reporter Sam Walker explains all you need to know about the payment.
The Winter Fuel Payment is an annual tax-free benefit designed to help cover the cost of heating through the colder months.
Most who are eligible receive the payment automatically.
Those who qualify are usually told via a letter sent in October or November each year.
If you do meet the criteria but don’t automatically get the Winter Fuel Payment, you will have to apply on the government’s website.
You’ll qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment this winter if:
- you were born on or before September 23, 1958
- you lived in the UK for at least one day during the week of September 16 to 22, 2024, known as the “qualifying week”
- you receive Pension Credit, Universal Credit, ESA, JSA, Income Support, Child Tax Credit or Working Tax Credit
If you did not live in the UK during the qualifying week, you might still get the payment if both the following apply:
- you live in Switzerland or a EEA country
- you have a “genuine and sufficient” link with the UK social security system, such as having lived or worked in the UK and having a family in the UK
But there are exclusions – you can’t get the payment if you live in Cyprus, France, Gibraltar, Greece, Malta, Portugal or Spain.
This is because the average winter temperature is higher than the warmest region of the UK.
You will also not qualify if you:
- are in hospital getting free treatment for more than a year
- need permission to enter the UK and your granted leave states that you can not claim public funds
- were in prison for the whole “qualifying week”
- lived in a care home for the whole time between 26 June to 24 September 2023, and got Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or income-related Employment and Support Allowance
Payments are usually made between November and December, with some made up until the end of January the following year.
